The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1887-05-12

III you go on IN tnlS way Snal never
know what you wanted to tell me- We
are losing the way"
"You are very unjust, Mr.. Tort. i
don't see how / could have told it any
shorter. But / will hurry along. You
see, now, tho surroundings in which
found myself the first time / saw Lieut..
Scratch. 1t was absolutely necessary to
describe them. You can see how he must
have Been bored. The Htterateur had
taken him Off into corner and was read
ing him some of his own verses. Finally,
the young lieutenant succeeded in shaking
off his tormentor and came to me. He
described, in the liveliest manner, the
painful situation from which he had just
rescued himself. The young Apollo did
not wish to attract attention, and he got
so near Scratch that he not only felt the
fellows breath, but-sOmething else.
1.-The lieutenant said that it was like
standing near a fountain from which the
spray fell over one. We laughed first at
the poor poet and then at the other mas
terpieces of the company. Wcwere enter
tanning ourselves ckarmingly and every
thing would have been all right if my
husband had not hcen in the parlor. That
look! / can see it now! Perhaps he
thought i should prefer to converse with
himi . ...... -
''Some days after we got his card,
Lewis Scratch, lieutenant of engineers
In the course of week he was so courte-
Gus as to call. l had another caller at the
time, Mrs. Rentz- Chamberlain. You know
her, of course, Mr. Tort-the one with the
glass eye. You see, it was no tete-a-tete.
But Mrs Rentz-C Chamberlain has an evil
tongue and she gave it free rein almost
before she got out of the house. IL you
will believe her, I appointed rendezvous
with Scratch. Only an old, ugly woman
could ConcOct such gossip. The fact is, /
told Scratch that | usually went to drive
in the park about 4. One must talk of
something! Can | help it if o'clock is
the most convenient time for taking a
walk?
81 rode out TO the park. He went on
foot, and you know as we'll as that no
body considers it anything remarkable if
q foot passenger in the park stands for a
moment on carriage step and chats with
IN acquaintance. Once left the carriage
for few minutes. l needed exercise; so
| took a short waikiki
"With the lieutenant
eyes; with him, of course! But it
was too funny! Imagine my horror when
] saw Mrs. Glassblower, fairly intoxi-
Gated with delight at her escapade, walk
ing up and down q side path with gen.
tlcman whom I knew very well. Her
gallant is a member of the legislature, and
it would be much more sensible for him
to go up to Albany, where it is hard, they
say, to get quorum to carry on business
but don't believe in troubling myself
about other peoples affairs.
81 believe we walked ten minutes, and
no
command never to go to the park at
o'clock again; second, command to go
to Boston at once and pass ''some weeks"
with my husbands family.
But now comes new casus belli. Eight
days later Scratch was also in Boston.
should like to know if l am answerable
for his actions? Can't anyone go where
he will? Railroads are for common use.
My dear mother in law, of course, read
me long sermons full of sounding NOR
atty and virtue. She certainly did not
have much call for sermonizings. She
ought to think of her own youth-for you
see, Mr.. Tort, though you may be disin-
clined TO believe it, my mother in law was
young once''-
At this instant the clock on the mantel
began TO strike. ,.-ss....=-.- .-
''Three o'clock, isn't it, asked Doretta?"
''No, L.
-Four o'clock Gracious me! can't
stay minute longer-I've ordered the
carriage for $50. Why, I promised Lew
-Mr.--Fvc an awfully important engage
ment, you know. l wouldn't miss it for
anything"
''but, Doretta, you have only told
mc''--
Another time. To-day it is really i'm
possible. You've heard my confession"
YES, my dear child; but as yet you
have only confessed the sins of others.
Your own
"Are so few they deserve complete alb
solution. hope my parents will look on
it in that light
"Only moment" protested Mr.. Tort,
as Dorctta hurricdly prepared to go.
Not n second longer. 1t Is late now.
nm greatly obliged, Mr.. Tort. Good
byr'
Mrs. Van Dyke whisked out Of the
room as quickly as wag tail slips into
the reeds. Her father confessor remained
sitting alone, and his face wore q thought
full, puzzled expression Frederick Owen
in New York News.
Placer Sans Investment.
Placer Sam told me of green lad, I'M
used to the ways of the west, who one
day wandered into Confederate Gulch and
applied for work There was no one
there who wanted to hire help, and he
was told to prospect. He didn't under
stand what the word meant, and insisted
that some one should put him to work
and give him an opportunity to earn his
daily bread. firing of his persistency,
one day when the lad made his usual ap-
nj wit oil of h
mcnt, a miner picked up stone from the
ground and throwing it out upon an I'M
broken spot in the gulch told him to get a
pick and shovel and dig. The lad did as
he was bid, and rs he quietly kept at his
work day after day and paid no particu-
lar attention to any one, the miners pleased
at last to have gotten rid of him, studi-
Ously left him 10 himself
For six months no kept up his digging,
and at the end Of that time surprised the
camp Icy buying a mule team end hiring a
company Of twenty-five armed men to
guard the nail kegs filled to the brim with
glittering gold dust that he had taken
from the ground on which the stone tosse,.
by careless hand had fallen. The kegs
were loaded behind the mules, and under
the eyes of the twenty-five men were
carted through the mountains and across
| the plains to Omaha, where it was dis
posed of and the handsome proceeds
| pockefsd by the lucky Lad. / asked the
man what was the name of the fellow who
| had made the great strike, and with jab
at the slaves Of the key with his knife, he
replied
'Tt wus me'
I was considerably surprised, but not
satisfied, and, continuing the converse
h no In1 f6n w in
vested, and he said that he had invested
every cent asked him what in and he
replied: "Poker. ST. Paul Globe.